Scottish castle sold in eight days as price soars beyond £2.85m asking price

A Scottish castle has been sold just eight days after it went on the market, with the buyer paying “significantly” over the £2.8 million asking price amid a flurry of interest from both home and abroad.

Duncraig Castle near Plockton in Wester Ross has been purchased by a UK buyer who intends to use the vast property as a private family home.

Cameron Ewer, estate agent with Savills in Glasgow, said Duncraig had been a “phenomenal sale”.

While the sale price cannot be publicly disclosed at present, the buyer purchased Duncraig at a “significant premium” over the asking price.

Mr Ewer said: “Duncraig went on the open market and it sold eight days later.

"We were inundated with more than 70 inquiries and the vast majority of them came from overseas. With the pound being weaker than the dollar, we do expect a high level of international interest in high-end properties.”

While strong interest in the property had come from the US and Middle East, Duncraig Castle sold to a buyer from the UK.

“Whether it is a UK buyer or an international buyer, the international interest means that a UK buyer will have to be prepared to pay what you need to pay to secure the property,” Mr Ewer added.

Duncraig Castle near Plockton has sold in eight days after a flood of interested buyers "significantly" pushed up the £2.85m asking price. PIC: Savills.

The 19th-century Baronial-style castle, built for Sir Alexander Matheson, the Highlander and MP who made his fortune trading opium in China, is used as a bed and breakfast and wedding venue.

In the early 2000s, it featured in a reality television programme that followed its past owners in their struggle to renovate the rambling pile.

Built in 1886 for Matheson, a long-serving MP for Ross and Cromarty, Duncraig has 15 en-suite bedrooms, five reception rooms and a private chapel. Overlooking Loch Carron, it features a private island, two moorings, a jetty and a boathouse.

It sits close to Duncraig train station, built in 1897 by the Highland Railway Company as a private stop for the castle, but which was later opened up to the public.